Customer satisfaction with airlines is nosing up for the second year in a row, but higher fares and fees are creating headwinds, a new survey has found. The 2011 North America Airline Satisfaction Study released Wednesday by J.D. Power and Associates , a marketing company in Westlake Village, Calif., asked more than 13,500 passengers who flew on North American carriers between July 2010 and April to rate the airlines on costs, fees, crews, in-flight services, check-in and other performance aspects.

Online lender Quicken Loans sits atop J.D. Power & Associates' survey of mortgage customer satisfaction for a fourth straight year. Quicken rated 841 overall out of a possible 1,000, according to J.D. Power, a Westlake Village market researcher. The Detroit-based lender received top ratings in all categories: the application and approval process, interactions with loan representatives, the closing experience, and level and quality of contact. BB&T Corp. of Winston-Salem, N.C., ranked second at 798 with high scores in all categories.

As a pilot for United Airlines, I read James Flanigan's Feb. 20 column in The Times, "Allegis Needs to Make a Name for Itself Fast," with much interest. Many employees at United Airlines share his skepticism regarding Allegis, the new name of United's parent company, but as Flanigan fairly pointed out, only time will tell. However, Flanigan seems to glorify and revere the almighty bottom line, and implies that Continental Airlines is the admirable yardstick in the industry. Frank Lorenzo (the chairman of Texas Air Corp.

AT&T Inc. came in dead last among major carriers in a customer satisfaction survey, hitting its lowest point since shortly before it began selling the iPhone in 2007. In terms of making customers happy, Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. tied for the top spot among the most popular U.S. carriers, according to the report from the American Customer Satisfaction Index. T-Mobile USA, which AT&T is in the process of buying, came in third, falling to a five-year low in the ACSI's survey.

Fees are rising, service can be lousy and … airline passengers are happier? Yes, according to a customer satisfaction survey released Tuesday. Research company J.D. Power & Associates asked more than 12,300 passengers who flew between April 2009 and April this year to rate North American airlines on costs and fees, flight crew, in-flight services, aircraft, boarding/deplaning/baggage, check-in and reservations. Compared with last year's survey, "performance improved across the board," said Stuart Greif, vice president and general manager of the global travel and hospitality practice at J.D. Power, based in Westlake Village.

Although the nation's major airlines continue to boast improved on-time arrival rates and less lost luggage, air travelers are still unhappy with America's airports. And Los Angeles International Airport is rated among the worst. San Francisco International Airport doesn't rate much better. Slow baggage delivery, long security lines, uncomfortable terminal seats and a lengthy, frustrating check-in process are the main complaints from air travelers about U.S. airports, according to a new survey by consumer research company J.D. Power & Associates Inc. Overall, the passengers gave the nation's airports a rating of 690 on a 1,000-point scale.

The cable industry is promising to compensate customers for late or missed service calls as part of a broad image-improvement effort announced Thursday. Starting March 1, customers will get $20 for missed or late calls. Prospective customers will receive free cable installation if a technician misses or is late for an appointment.

Many U.S. health insurers provided better medical care to their patients in 2004, but more consumers are enrolling in types of plans that do not make such data public, a survey released Monday found. A privately held insurer, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care, provided the best healthcare coverage in the United States, according to the survey by the National Committee for Quality Assurance, a privately funded nonprofit group. Several Cigna Corp. and Aetna Inc.

Pop quiz: Name the telecom company whose wireless service is rated dead last for customer satisfaction and has been dubbed "worst carrier" by Consumer Reports. If you guessed AT&T, go to the head of the class. So does anyone think things will improve if AT&T Inc. wins federal approval to acquire rival T-Mobile USA for $39 billion, giving it more wireless customers than any other service provider? "What improves customer satisfaction is when carriers compete with each other," said Parul Desai, telecom policy counsel with Consumers Union, publisher of Consumer Reports.